Beautiful Names with Beautiful Meanings

Ada is one of the classic baby names for girls that is suddenly super stylish again. A favorite at the end of the nineteenth century, Ada is an alternative to the over-popular Ava. Ada is also part of the trend toward simple, old-fashioned names beginning with a vowel, like Ivy and Ella.

Adira is one of those rare names that's both little-used and simple, and crosses languages easily. Pronounced ah-DEER-ah, Adira is given to only a handful of girls in the US each year and could make a worthy substitute for such overexposed favorites as Ava and Ariana.

A name that would lavish your child with adoration, a princess name--as in Princess Adora of She-Ra: Princess of Power.

Albert has acquired a new gloss as one of the top royal baby boy names, a considerable upgrade from its serious, studious image (think Einstein, Schweitzer).

Alexis, a one-time exclusively-boys’ name, was more popular than its sister Alexandra for quite a while, but in recent years Alexandra has overtaken it once again. Alexis was a Top 20 girls’ name from 1994-2010 but has experienced a decline in popularity in recent years, though now it's one of the top unisex names.

Alfonso was a royal name in Spain as far back as the 7th century, but it is rarely heard outside the Hispanic community in the US.

Alice is a classic literary name that's both strong and sweet, ranking in the US Top 100 and popular throughout the western world. Alice is derived from the Old French name Aalis, a diminutive of Adelais that itself came from the Germanic name Adalhaidis, which is composed of the Proto-Germanic elements aþala, meaning "noble," and haidu, "kind, appearance, type."

Alina has been drifting up the US popularity charts since the early 1980s, now nearing the Top 100. But Alina's real strength is in its international flexibility: The name ranks highly in a wide range of European, English speaking, and Latin American countries.

Alisa is less popular than more complicated forms of Alice like Alyssa or Alicia, perhaps because of its association with the once-overused Lisa.

Alma is a somewhat solemn, soulful name that had a burst of popularity a century ago, then faded into the flowered wallpaper, and is now finding its footing once more.

Alvin has a sturdy, no-frills sound that belies its somewhat whimsical meaning. Interesting potential namesakes include British rocker Alvin Stardust, and US footballer Alvin Williams, and African-American dance legend (and activist) Alvin Ailey.

This Amy/Mia combination debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2013. It could also be seen as a variant of Amaya.

Amity--what nicer gift to give your little girl than a name that signifies friendship and harmony? This virtue name is also more rhythmic and feminine than the single-syllable Hope, Faith, and Grace.

Andreas is a beautiful name, with the patina of an Old Master painting, one that could make a dashing namesake for an Uncle Andrew.

Angelica is by far the choicest form of the angelic names -- more delicate than Angelina, more feminine than Angel, more modern than Angela. But though Angelica is so lacy and poetic, it lags behind the bolder Angelina (probably for obvious reasons).

Phonetic spelling of the Muslim Aanisah, chosen by singer Macy Gray for one of her daughters.

Anja is one of the most internatioanl of several versions of Ann/Anna now being imported, also including Anya and Annika.

Annabel is a spirited name that embodies quirky British gentility. Appearing in Scotland as early as the twelfth century, where it was a royal name, it also recalls the romantic Edgar Allan Poe poem Annabel Lee, written upon the death of his young wife, Virginia.

Anwen is one of the simplest and best of the classic Welsh girls' names, more unusual than Bronwen but with the same serene feel.

Aria is a multi-cultural name with two extremely popular versions: this more word-like one along with Arya, the spelling used for the feisty young heroine of Game of Thrones. There were about 6400 baby girls named Aria in the US last year alog with 2400 named Arya, which counted together places the name in the Top 10.